Meet Break the Mold Athlete Matt

I am 31 years old and originally from Pennsylvania. I moved to Kentucky in 2008. I come from a very big Italian catholic family who have loved me unconditionally no matter what I have done. I moved all over the east coast prior to Kentucky trying to escape a problem that I always blamed on everything and everyone else. A problem that no geographic change could help. I was trying to run away from myself. The problem was me.

On November 13, 2016 I celebrated one year of sobriety. This isn’t just about me, it’s about my family my friends and all the other people out there still struggling. People do recover and can change their lives no matter how bad things have gotten or the horrible things we did. November 13th is also my mother’s birthday I sent her flowers and the card said we now share a special day, your
Birthday and my rebirth day. Thank you for everything you have done for me and for never giving up on me when I gave up on myself. She messaged me today saying it’s no coincidence we share this special day together and I gave her the best present I could ever give her: my sobriety. That’s what it’s all about.

You had been sober for about 10 months when you started coming to Break the
Mold CrossFit. Did you change any behaviors or see any changes in yourself with starting regular workouts in conjunction with your sobriety?

Naturally I am a competitive person with a lot of energy. It really helps me deal with all of that in a positive manner. Not to mention I spent the better part of 15 years using drugs, mainly heroin and alcohol. Now I almost feel I am indebted to my body for keeping me alive and to get as healthy as I was in high school. It also has taught me discipline and accountability. Not every day after work do I want to go lift weights considering I have a very physical job, however, I do what I don’t want to do today. In the past I’ve always done what I wanted which causesd over a decade of pain and misery. And that feeling I get when I set a new PR is indescribable. It’s a feeling that I love and I used to pay a lot of money to feel. Now I have a coach who pushes me rather then a drug dealer helping me kill myself.

What’s your advice for someone else who is struggling with sobriety?

If you’re struggling like I have and still do, there is help out there. Today I help people because someone was there for me when I needed it. Reach out to someone, there is a solution to your problem, a problem that is a disease, a problem that you cannot beat by yourself. People are dying left and right from the disease of addiction. You don’t have to be that person. 15 months ago I was homeless living in shelters with only the clothes on my back. I move into my own apartment tomorrow, I have a new vehicle, my family is back in my life, I have a huge support system, I help a lot of people, I have a successful flooring business with people who count on me for a paycheck but most importantly, I am ok with myself today, I am ok with my past for it made me who I am today and for once in my life I am happy.